If you’re a regular Singapore Airlines Business Class traveller, you’ll probably be familiar with Row 11. Located at the very front of the cabin, this coveted row ranks among the most sought-after seats for SIA passengers, but securing it for your upcoming flight isn’t always easy.

That’s because it’s typically blocked for advance selection to all but the airline’s highest-tier frequent flyers.

Since mid-2026, though, Row 11 has become the least of your worries.

Singapore Airlines now also blocks the entire forward section of the Business Class cabin for anyone holding a Business Lite fare or a Promo, Saver or Advantage KrisFlyer award, a change we first broke news of back in May 2026. On some aircraft that’s more than half the cabin, unavailable to you from the moment you book.

It’s part of a broader policy that withholds certain seats across several cabins based on commercial fare, loyalty status or operational reasons.

Singapore Airlines periodically adjusts its seat blocking policies, and with a significant new restriction now in force alongside the usual aircraft-specific variations, it’s a good time to refresh our comprehensive guide to the carrier’s advance seat selection rules.

This article cuts through the confusion to reveal exactly which seats are blocked in advance – and crucially, when those coveted blocked seats might finally become available for booking, and how to secure them once they do.

The First Class and Suites policy

Years ago, Singapore Airlines blocked bassinet seats in its First Class and Suites cabins network-wide from advance selection. However, the airline discontinued this practice in 2019, making all seats available for selection immediately upon booking.

The change no doubt reflected SIA’s recognition that infant travel in these ultra-premium cabins was relatively uncommon, making the seat restrictions an unnecessary inconvenience for customers, especially with as few as four seats to choose from.

For example, in First Class on the Boeing 777-300ER, the bassinet position at 1A was previously unavailable for advance selection online. Even before a single passenger booked, the seat map looked like this:

While seat 1A was always available if you wanted it – perhaps because 1F was taken and you preferred to avoid the middle pair – you had to call Singapore Airlines directly to secure it.

Thankfully now there’s no need, on a 777-300ER flight with no bookings in First Class this is your seat choice:

The former policy was even more of an issue on the airline’s Airbus A380s. The former bassinet preselection rules meant you couldn’t pick one of the two double bed options in the 2017 Suites cabin (1F / 2F) online, since 1F is the bassinet position:

That scenario certainly wasn’t ideal for Suites passengers if one of the other Suites that can be combined into a double bed (1A, or 2A, or both) had already been selected, either by another couple or a solo traveller.

Thankfully it has long been resolved. No need to pick up the phone to secure the right side double bed on the A380 anymore:

This was a sensible improvement. Blocking up to 25% of available seats for the remote possibility of infant passengers was illogical, and likely consumed considerable customer service resources – particularly since the phone agents would simply assign you the bassinet seat anyway upon request.

This means there are no longer any seats regularly blocked in any First Class or Suites cabin on any Singapore Airlines flight.

Contrary to popular belief, you will not be removed from a bassinet seat (1A on the 777-300ER or 1F on the A380) if a passenger with an infant subsequently books the same flight. Singapore Airlines may ask you to relocate, but will not compel you to move.

Passengers with infants are actually not entitled to a bassinet seat in any cabin – it’s first come, first served.

However, the airline does still block seats at bassinet positions in Business Class, Economy Class and Premium Economy Class.

PPS Club

PPS Club members receive no special privileges when it comes to advance seat selection in First Class or Suites. Whether you’re paying cash or redeeming miles, your status won’t affect access – all passengers can select from the full seat map in these cabins – as they should, given the fares involved.

However, the picture changes in Business Class.

On certain aircraft and routes, Singapore Airlines withholds specific seats from the advance selection pool, making them available only to PPS Club members.

If you are a PPS Club member, provided your membership number is included in your booking, these seats will be available for you to select both for you and your travelling companions on the same booking.

Your window of opportunity

Not all of these preferred seats are snapped up by PPS Club members on every flight, which means there’s still a decent chance for other passengers to secure them – if they’re quick. Any unassigned seats are typically released for general selection closer to departure.

Previously, Singapore Airlines operated two separate timelines for releasing blocked seats: 96 hours before departure for most routes, and just 48 hours for flights between Singapore and Europe or the USA.

Fortunately, this process has now been standardised.

Seat blocks are lifted across all routes exactly 96 hours (four days) prior to departure.

Your Business Class fare now determines what you can pick

Until 2026, advance seat selection in Business Class came down to only two things: your status, and whether you had an infant in the booking. There’s now a third, and for most readers it’s the one that hurts the most.

Singapore Airlines has extended its seat blocks to cover the whole forward section of the Business Class cabin on all but the smallest aircraft, and it applies to you based on what you paid, in cash or miles.

Restricted selection applies if you booked:

• a Business Lite cash fare (including partner-issued tickets in the same fare codes);
• a Promo or Saver award; or
• an Advantage award.

Awards booked with a partner airline’s miles are treated the same way.

Full selection applies if you are a PPS Club member, regardless of what you paid, or if you booked a Business Standard or Business Flexi fare, or an Access award.

KrisFlyer Elite Gold and Elite Silver members get nothing here. Unlike Economy and Premium Economy, where status earns you free or discounted access to paid seats, Business Class advance selection privileges begin and end at the PPS Club level.

Bookings including an infant are unaffected. Bassinet positions still unlock at the time of booking, even on a Saver award, and even where the bassinet row sits inside the blocked forward rows, as it often does.

The good news is that this block lifts on exactly the same timeline as the others. At 96 hours before departure, the whole cabin opens to all Business Class passengers, and anything still unclaimed is yours for the taking.

Here’s where the new dividing line falls on each aircraft type. Between 40% and 50% of the cabin remains available to you at the time of booking, depending on the aircraft – least of all on the Airbus A380, where only around a third of the seats are yours to choose from.

Business Lite fares /  Saver, Advantage & Promo awards
Aircraft	Blocked at booking	Free to choose
Boeing 737-8	No forward rows block	All bar 11C, 11H, 12B, 12J
Boeing 777-300ER	Rows 11 – 17	Rows 18 – 23
Boeing 787-10	Rows 11 – 16	Rows 17 – 20
Airbus A350 Medium Haul	Rows 11 – 16	Rows 17 – 21
Airbus A350 Long Haul	Rows 11 – 16	Rows 17 – 22
Airbus A350 ULR	10A, rows 11 – 21	Rows 22 – 29
Airbus A380	Rows 11 – 22	Rows 23 – 24, 91 – 97
All types	Everything opens at STD – 96h

Bassinet and extra legroom blocks still apply within the “free to choose” sections and those are covered aircraft by aircraft below.

The Business Class rundown

Specific seats in SIA’s Business Class cabins on most aircraft and routes are blocked for advance selection, so that they are available for:

• PPS Club members, until a predetermined time before departure; and
• Bookings including an infant, until a predetermined time before departure; and
• Passengers on higher fare types, being Business Standard and Business Flexi cash fares or Access awards, until a predetermined time before departure; and
• Crew rest requirements, on longer flights (these are never selectable).

Here’s how it works by aircraft type and flight length.

Airbus A350 Medium Haul

	Blocked Seats
	Extra Legroom	Bassinet + Legroom	Forward Rows
Blocked	11A 11D 11F 11K 19D 19F	19A 19K	Rows 12 – 16
Advance selection for	PPS Club	PPS Club Infant Bookings	PPS Club Standard fare Flexi fare Access award
Released to all J pax	STD – 96h
How it looks

Airbus A350 Long Haul

	Blocked Seats
	Extra Legroom	Bassinet + Legroom	Forward Rows
Blocked	11A 11D 11F 11K	19A 19D 19F 19K	Rows 12 – 16
Advance selection for	PPS Club	PPS Club Infant Bookings	PPS Club Standard fare Flexi fare Access award
Released to all J pax	STD – 96h
How it looks

Bassinet seats in Row 19 were previously available for advance selection on Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur flights using A350 LH aircraft. Singapore Airlines has since reversed that, and the standard blocks now apply on these routes too.

Airbus A350 ULR

	Blocked Seats
	Extra Legroom	Bassinet + Legroom	Forward Rows
Blocked	10A 11A^ 11D 11F 11K 19D 19F	19A 19K	Rows 12 – 17 20 – 21
Advance selection for	PPS Club	PPS Club Infant Bookings	PPS Club Standard fare Flexi fare Access award
Released to all J pax	STD – 96h
How it looks

^ 11A does not actually feature extra legroom on the A350 ULR, but is blocked for advance selection by non-PPS Club members anyway

The reason seat 11A is blocked on the Airbus A350 ULR remains unclear, as it is neither a bassinet position nor offers extra legroom. This appears to be a system limitation.

It’s actually ‘solo’ seat 10A that provides extra legroom, on the forward left side of this cabin. Curiously, this seat has moved in and out of the blocked category more than once. It was freely selectable for a spell in late 2025, but Singapore Airlines has once again recognised its value, and it is now reserved for PPS Club members in advance.

Seats 19D and 19F have had a similarly unsettled history. For a period they could be selected by any booking with an infant included, despite not being bassinet positions, but they’ve since been moved back into the ‘PPS Club only’ category.

The A350 ULR seems to be the type Singapore Airlines’ IT department finds hardest to settle on when it comes to advance seat selection logic!

Airbus A380

	Blocked Seats
	Extra Legroom	Bassinet + Legroom	Forward Rows
Blocked	11A 11D 11F 11K 96D 96F	91D 91F 96A 96K	Rows 12 – 22
Advance selection for	PPS Club	PPS Club Infant Bookings	PPS Club Standard fare Flexi fare Access award
Released to all J pax	STD – 96h
How it looks

Singapore Airlines previously blocked seats 91A and 91K for advance selection, having earlier unlocked them to bookings with an infant included even though they aren’t bassinet positions on the A380.

Both have now been released entirely, and can be selected by any Business Class passenger from the moment they book.

Remember that Business Class on SIA’s A380s offers three ‘double bed’ options at the bulkhead rows – 11 D/F, 91 D/F and 96 D/F.

It’s always worth checking whether these have been selected in advance by PPS Club members (or in the case of 91 D/F, potentially by those travelling with an infant) at the T-96 hours stage, because if not this is your opportunity as a non-PPS status holder to snag these coveted pairs.

That’s now true of 11 D/F for a far larger group of passengers, since the entire forward cabin is off-limits at booking on a Lite fare or cheaper award.

Even on Singapore – London flights, these are often still vacant at the key T-96 hour mark!

Boeing 737-8 MAX

	Blocked Seats
	Throne Seats	Bassinet	Forward Rows
Blocked	12B 12J	11C 11H	None
Advance selection for	PPS Club	PPS Club Infant Bookings	All J pax
Released to all J pax	STD – 96h
How it looks

Singapore Airlines did not used to apply any advance seat blocks in Business Class on its Boeing 737-8 MAX aircraft, allowing all vacant seats to be selected by any Business Class traveller on any route, regardless of status.

However, the policy changed in mid-2025, with ‘throne’ seats 12B and 12J now only available in advance for PPS Club members, while bassinet seats 11C and 11H also have blocks applied to cater for bookings with infants.

That means that unless you are a PPS Club member or have an infant in your booking, only six out of the ten seats in Business Class on these aircraft will be available for you to select, even if you are the first to book.

On the plus side, this is the only aircraft type in the fleet where Singapore Airlines hasn’t gone further. With just ten Business Class seats to begin with, and non-PPS passengers already limited to six of them, there’s no forward rows block on the 737-8 – your fare or award type makes no difference here.

Boeing 777-300ER

	Blocked Seats
	Extra Legroom	Bassinet + Legroom	Forward Rows
Blocked	11A 11D 11F 11K	15A 15D 15F 15K	Rows 12 – 14 16 – 17
Advance selection for	PPS Club	PPS Club Infant Bookings	PPS Club Standard fare Flexi fare Access award
Released to all J pax	STD – 96h
How it looks

Note: Bassinet row 15 falls inside the blocked forward rows. It remains selectable at the time of booking if you have an infant in your booking, whatever fare or award type you hold.

Bassinet seats in row 15 were previously available for advance selection on Jakarta flights using Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. However, Singapore Airlines recently changed this policy, and the same advance seat selection restrictions now apply to this route as well.

Boeing 787-10

	Blocked Seats
	Extra Legroom	Bassinet + Legroom	Forward Rows
Blocked	11D 11F	11A 11K	Rows 12 – 16
Advance selection for	PPS Club	PPS Club Infant Bookings	PPS Club Standard fare Flexi fare Access award
Released to all J pax	STD – 96h
How it looks

Crew rest seat blocks (Business Class)

Singapore Airlines also blocks seats in the Business Class cabin for crew rest purposes on longer flights. These seats are not selectable by any passenger, and the block is never released, for obvious reasons.

The good news is, these aren’t particularly popular seats anyway.

• Airbus A350 Long Haul
  Seat 18D is blocked for crew rest on flights of around 13.5 hours or more
  (e.g. SIN-MAN, SIN-LGW, LAX-SIN)
• Airbus A350 ULR
  Seats 17D and 17F are blocked for crew rest on all A350 ULR flights to and from New York – but not to and from San Francisco
  (e.g. SIN-JFK, EWR-SIN)
• Airbus A380
  Seats 23D and 23F are blocked for crew rest on SIN-LHR flights
  Only seat 23F is blocked on (shorter) LHR-SIN flights, and on SIN-FRA / FRA-SIN flights
• Boeing 777-300ER
  Seat 19K is blocked for crew rest on flights of around 13 hours or more
  (e.g. SIN-CDG)

Interestingly for many of these Europe flights, it means the crew rest seat block applies on the westbound flight from Singapore, but not on the (shorter) eastbound flight back home.

For example, 18D is blocked in Business Class on the 14 hour Airbus A350 LH from Singapore to London Gatwick (SQ314), but not on the 13 hour 20 minute Gatwick to Singapore sector (SQ313).

That gives SIA an extra Business Class seat to sell in that direction.

Unable to change seat online?

One slightly frustrating “feature” of the Singapore Airlines website and app is that within 96 hours of departure, it often no longer allows you to modify your seat selection for an existing booking, making it apparently impossible to move into an empty seat at a bassinet or extra legroom row, for example.

In this case, you can still switch your seats by calling SIA or using Kris the Chatbot (click “Chat with a live agent”). They will happily assist to move you to an unoccupied seat, like 11A if available.

If you booked a Singapore Airlines flight through a partner airline or used frequent flyer miles from another airline, you can typically change your seat by accessing your booking on that airline’s website within 96 hours of departure.

For example, I secured Row 11 in Business Class exactly 96 hours before departure for an SIA-operated flight (SIN-FRA) that I booked under a Lufthansa codeshare through the Lufthansa website last year.

More recently, I booked a Singapore – Auckland flight in Business Class using Aeroplan miles (a good deal at 60,000 miles one-way) and was able to select Row 11 through the Air Canada website at the 96-hour mark – no phone call or online chat needed.

Economy and Premium Economy

Seat blocks in Economy Class and Premium Economy class relate to either bassinet positions and/or seats that attract an additional charge like extra legroom or forward zone seats.

The latter are available to KrisFlyer Elite Silver, KrisFlyer Elite Gold and PPS Club frequent flyer members at a reduced fee or even no charge as you progress through the status tiers, or you can pay extra to sit there.

The only seats you won’t usually ever be able to select in these cabins are bassinet positions, unless you have an infant included in your booking.

Seat selection fees in Economy Class and Premium Economy Class are cancelled 48 hours prior to departure.

• In Premium Economy, all available seats, including bassinet and extra legroom positions, are then available for free selection by any passenger.
• In Economy, extra legroom seat blocks remain in place even within 48 hours of departure time, but you can then select an unoccupied forward zone seat for free, regardless of your status tier.

The free Premium Economy selection then includes ‘solo seats’ on the Airbus A350 ULR aircraft, though good luck snagging one of those just two days before departure! There are only six on each aircraft, and PPS Club members or those willing to pay extra have usually secured them already, in our experience.

How to tell if your seat is blocked or already occupied

The Singapore Airlines website and app show a blocked seat exactly as they show an occupied one – greyed out, with no explanation. For years, the workaround was ExpertFlyer, which displayed the two differently, letting you work out whether a bulkhead seat had genuinely been taken by a PPS Club member or was simply being held back.

That no longer works for Singapore Airlines flights.

ExpertFlyer now reports SIA’s blocked seats as occupied, indistinguishable from a seat someone has actually selected. Here’s an Airbus A350 Medium Haul service to Western Sydney, loaded into the system 355 days before departure:

With no way to distinguish a blocked seat from a taken one, there’s no longer any point trying to preview your chances in advance.

Which simplifies our advice considerably – it is now always worth checking at the 96 hour mark. You have nothing to lose by looking, and on a lightly-booked flight the odds are better than you might assume.

Once the block lifts, any of those seats that were merely being held back, rather than being genuinely occupied, appear as vacant. Here’s a Boeing 787-10 to Bali, two days out:

That’s your cue to act, and given the website often won’t let you change seats inside 96 hours, the live chat or the call centre is then the way forward.

The latest policy for seat blocking on Singapore Airlines flights is:

• No First Class or Suites seats are blocked for advance selection on any Singapore Airlines flight, except for special requests and operational requirements.
• Specific seats in Business Class on some aircraft types and routes are blocked for advance selection and can only be allocated to those with an infant in their booking, or to PPS Club members.
• Since mid-2026, the entire forward section of the Business Class cabin is additionally blocked for selection by anyone holding a Business Lite fare, or a Saver, Advantage or Promo award – on several aircraft types that’s more than half the cabin.
• Business Class seat blocks are removed 96 hours prior to departure. Securing a bulkhead row seat in Business Class at this time, or one in the forward section, could be vital to securing more comfort for your journey.
• You may need to call or use the agent live chat function to move to one of these seats – it doesn’t take long and is definitely worth doing in our opinion.
• Bassinet seats are not blocked in First Class or Suites, nor will you be relocated even if a traveller with an infant subsequently books on the same flight.
• Some seats in Business Class are reserved for crew rest purposes on longer flights. These can never be selected by customers.

Blocked seat selection on Singapore Airlines can be frustrating, especially in 2026 with a swathe of the Business Class cabin out of bounds for cheaper fares and redemption bookings.

However, with a little timing and the right tools you stand a good chance of grabbing one of the best seats in the cabin. Set a reminder for T-96 hours, and don’t hesitate to use SIA’s live agent chat or call centre if the website blocks you from making that essential last-minute seat switch.

Remember that both the Singapore Airlines website and ExpertFlyer now show a blocked seat exactly as they show an occupied one, so there’s no way to tell in advance whether the seat you want is actually taken. That makes it worth checking every time, on every flight, the moment the four-day mark passes.

(Cover Photo: MainlyMiles)